The Franklin Reporter & Advocate Eight Villages, One Community
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Update: A delegation of representatives from Sierra Leone visited the township Aug. 25 to ask for help for the survivors of a deadly mudslide in their country, and to thank officials for hosting a donation drop-off point.
Lead by Amadu Koroma, Sierra Leone’s Deputy Ambassador to the United Nations, the group first visited the Masjid-e-Ali Mosque on Cedar Grove Lane to ask for help. Also speaking was Mayor Phil Kramer.
Following that, the group headed over to the East Franklin Fire Department headquarters on Pine Grove Avenue, where they met with Fire Chief Dan Krushinski.
Krushinski said the fire department was happy to serve as the drop-off point for donations to the mudslide survivors because East Franklin has enjoyed a close relationship with the township’s Sierra Leonean community for a number of years.
Koroma said that Franklin was chosen not only for its large Sierra Leonean population, but also because the the close relationship the township has with the West African community.
It has not yet been determined if there will be one day for drop-offs, or if donors will be able to drop off items on a number of days.
The delegation’s visit was hosted by Foday Mansarray, head of the West African Community Foundation in the township, and Alex Kharazi, co-founder of the mosque and president of the township’s Interfaith Council.
Original Story: A drop-off point for donations to survivors of the Sierra Leone mudslide has been established in the township, and is the only one in the state so far.
Items can be dropped off to the East Franklin Fire Department headquarters at 121 Pine Grove Ave.
Franklin has the largest number of Sierra Leonian ex-patriots in the world.
On Aug. 14, a region of Freetown, Sierra Leone was devastated by a mudslide and floods. Nearly 500 people were killed, and hundreds more are injured and missing.
On Aug. 23, Alhusine M. Sesay, the Head of Chancery of the Permanent Mission of Sierra Leone, issued a written plea for assistance, in which he named the Franklin location and a location in Harlem, NY as the only two drop-off points for donations.
A list of priorities has been created, but, Sesay said in his letter, other items can also be donated, with notification to the mission at (212) 688-1656.
Following are items which are needed for survivors:
- Blankets
- Mattresses
- Hygiene Kits
- Mosquito nets
- Anti-Malaria medications
- Raincoats
- Rainboots
- Heavy Duty Gloves
- Megaphones
- Megaphone batteries
- Solar Lights
- Incentives for Volunteers
- Bagged rice
- Tents
- Water purifiers
- Fuel
- Face masks
- Protective Overalls
- Camp Beds
- Toiletry Kits
- Packets of Sanitary Towels
- Cooking Oil (gallons)
- Bags of Pulses
- Psycho-social support counselors
- Wheelbarrows
- Shovels
- Pick axes
- Rakes
- 10,000 Litre Storage Tanks
- 50kg Chlorine Kegs
- Household Water Treatment Systems
- Dewatering Machines for Contaminated Wells
- Full sets of water quality testing instruments and reagents
- Vehicles for water quality testing and monitoring
- Sewage emptying trucks
- Veronica Buckets (portable handwashing stations)
- Stationary kits
Those wising to make financial donations can write checks made payable to the Permanent Mission of Sierra Leone, or by direct deposit to this special bank account: Citibank, N.A., 734 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017. Routing (ABA) number: 021000089. Swift International Code: CITIUS 33.
2017 Sierra Leone Dignitaries
